Top Indiana Republicans rebuke Trump after criticism over their silence

The GOP presidential nominee has suggested the judge is biased due to his Mexican heritage.
Nate Chute/IndyStar

Presumptive GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump continued to defend his comments about U.S. District Judge Gonzalo P. Curiel on Tuesday, June 7, 2016, before saying he would no longer discuss the matter.(Photo: AP 2016 file photo)

Gov. Mike Pence and other top Indiana Republicans joined a chorus of national GOP figures Tuesday in condemning Donald Trump’s ethnicity-based attacks on an Indiana-born judge.

The responses came a day after Indiana Democrats criticized the state's GOP leaders for their silence on the issue, even as other prominent Republicans outside the state slammed Trump for what U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan on Tuesday called “the textbook definition of a racist comment.”

Pence chimed in later Tuesday.

“Every American is entitled to a fair trial and an impartial judge, but of course I think those comments were inappropriate,” he said after an unrelated event at the Statehouse. “I don’t think it’s ever appropriate to question the partiality of the judge based on their ethnic background.”

U.S. Sen. Dan Coats, meanwhile, criticized Trump on Twitter.

“Judge Gonzalo Curiel and I have a few things in common — we’re both IU Law grads and both sons of first generation immigrants to the US,” Coats wrote. “Donald Trump’s comments about the ethnicity of Judge Curiel, who was born in Indiana, were totally inappropriate.”

U.S. Rep. Todd Young’s campaign for Indiana’s open U.S. Senate seat also issued a statement opposing the Republican presidential candidate’s comments.

"Our campaign is focused on economic and national security solutions that will move our country forward, and Mr. Trump should do likewise, instead of making highly inappropriate remarks about a judge's ethnicity,” said Young’s campaign manager, Trevor Foughty.

U.S. Rep. Susan Brooks, a former U.S. attorney, said she too has "deep concerns about Mr. Trump's rhetoric."

"When a legal outcome doesn't suit you, personal attacks against the presiding judge are not the answer," Brooks said in a tweet.

At issue are Trump’s repeated criticisms of U.S. District Judge Gonzalo P. Curiel, who was born in East Chicago to immigrant parents. Curiel is presiding over class-action lawsuits against Trump's now-inactive real estate school, Trump University.

Trump has called Curiel a "hater" and suggested he is biased because of his Mexican heritage. When asked by CNN's Jake Tapper on Friday whether his comments were racist, Trump said: "We're building a wall. He’s a Mexican."

"He’s not from Mexico," Tapper responded. "He’s from Indiana."

"He’s of Mexican heritage," Trump said, "and he’s very proud of it."

Trump continued to defend his comments Tuesday before saying he would no longer discuss the matter.

"Due to what I believe are unfair and mistaken rulings in this case and the Judge’s reported associations with certain professional organizations, questions were raised regarding the Obama appointed Judge’s impartiality. It is a fair question. I hope it is not the case," he said in a lengthy emailed statement late Tuesday afternoon. "While this lawsuit should have been dismissed, it is now scheduled for trial in November. I do not intend to comment on this matter any further. With all of the thousands of people who have given the courses such high marks and accolades, we will win this case!"

Trump's focus on Curiel's ethnicity has earned rebukes from prominent Republicans, including Ryan, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and Ohio Gov. John Kasich.

But top Indiana Republicans had declined to comment until Tuesday.

"The silence is deafening, and it should be a wake-up call for Hoosiers," Indiana Democratic Party Chairman John Zody said during a news conference Monday.

Pence, who has endorsed Trump, addressed that criticism in his brief remarks to reporters Tuesday.

“If I wanted to comment on everything being said in a presidential campaign, I would have run for president,” he said. “I’m focused on a growing Indiana economy.”

But the campaign of his Democratic challenger, John Gregg, said Pence's response to Trump's attacks on a native Hoosier was too weak.

“It’s interesting that Mike Pence has commented on every single national issue over the last four years but now has developed a case of lockjaw," Gregg campaign spokesman Jeff Harris said. "Donald Trump’s comments were not just ‘inappropriate,’ they were blatantly racist.”

Bernard Fraga, a political scientist at Indiana University who studies politics, race and ethnicity, has suggested that one reason for the slow response from Indiana Republicans might be that many are in the middle of competitive races.

“The individuals who are actually up for election are hesitating to make a strong stand because they don’t want to alienate Trump’s voters," he said Monday, "but they also don’t want to alienate broader groups such as moderates, Hispanics or Democrats who might support them in the fall.”

Indiana played a key role in Trump's rise. It was his victory in the state's May 3 primary that sealed his status as the presumptive GOP presidential nominee. It's also a state with a relatively small Hispanic population — about 6.1 percent, which ranks Indiana 29th among the 50 states, according to the Pew Research Center.

Donald Trump’s comments about the ethnicity of Judge Curiel, who was born in Indiana, were totally inappropriate

Trump rally attendees head toward the Republican front-runner's podium area, about two hours before his scheduled speech, Indiana State Fairgrounds, Indianapolis, Wednesday, April 27, 2016. Robert Scheer/IndyStar